CrazyMums Posted January 31, 2005 #1 Share Posted January 31, 2005 I gather from reading the boards that most book independently from the ship, but has anyone been on Carnival's Stingray Sandbar Tour? It says you take a 65 foot double decker catamaran to the sandbar and are led into 3-5 feet of water. From the picture on the shore excursion site, it looks like the ladder comes down pretty far. Does it reach to the sand or is there a drop? Anyone done this particular tour through Carnival? Please? We leave in 21 days! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zydecocruiser Posted January 31, 2005 #2 Share Posted January 31, 2005 I have not been on that particular tour, but have been on a couple of Carnival tours to stingray city. One was the Cockatoo Catamaran which may or may not be offered. If available, you may only find it listed on the TV in your cabin - it will have the most limited capacity. I liked this one but was more expensive than I could have done on my own. The other was the Coral Reef and Stingray Safari. This one I have since done the equal (actually much better) for less than half the price. Carnival is one of the ones that confuses the heck out of people with the stingray city tours. If the Valor tours are like the Conquest (which is my guess), there are two stingray city tours - one titled Stingray Sandbar tour and the other called Stingray City tour. On the Conquest, these were the same tour, but with different operators. The potential is great that both of these will have a lot of people on them. The good thing is that if you only want a stingray city trip (no additional snorkeling stop(s)), that's what these do. As for the ladders, I doubt any of them will reach the bottom, but several rungs should certainly be below the water line. Why I doubt any will be on bottom is because there will always be some wave action with the potential of the boat to put significant weight on the ladder and reduce the life of the ladder. The boat tours are the first to cancel if the water is a little rough, so if that happens, still try to be on one of the first tenders off the ship, and you can still pick up a stingray tour once you get on shore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori&Tony Posted February 1, 2005 #3 Share Posted February 1, 2005 I've done this tour several times. The benefit of using this is that you have first opportunity for the tenders to get off the ship. If you book independently you have too wait for tenders. You take a bus to the departure point. The ride to the sandbar is about 25 minutes. The water at the sandbar is only 3-4 feet at best. The ladder does not reach the sand bottom but there is not much room for you to drop downbto. DO NOT confuse this trip with the stingray CITY tours. That location is more for divers & true snorkelers since the water is about 10-12 feet deep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zydecocruiser Posted February 1, 2005 #4 Share Posted February 1, 2005 A problem is that Carnival and many others interchange the name Stingray City and Stingray Sandbar. On Carnival, if you look at the descriptions and listen to the tour talks, the are the same tour, but with different operators. Both descriptions say the sandbar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flametamer Posted February 1, 2005 #5 Share Posted February 1, 2005 We have done the Carnival tour. We just got back from doing a tour with Nativeway watersports. We had a group of 20. We had the whole boat to ourselves. They were awesome. With Carnival we were packed on like Sardines. As for getting off the boat early. We were probably only 10 minutes behind the Carnival tours. They get you off fast. Nativeway will wait for you.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmacruising Posted February 1, 2005 #6 Share Posted February 1, 2005 We just took the Stingray tour with Native Way on Jan. 25th. They were awesome! Only about 10 of us on the boat. We didn't have any trouble getting off the ship, they put us on the 1st tender when we told them we had reservations. The ship actually cancelled several of their Stingray tours that day because they said the water was too rough. When we asked our guide about it, he said the water was calming down, and would be okay by the time we got there, which it was. There were several other boats out there, all with a lot of people. I'm convinced Native Way is the only way to go! Oh, and by the way, no water shoes allowed at Stingray City, in case you step on one, you can feel it and back off immediately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyMums Posted February 2, 2005 Author #7 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Thank you all for the replies. We have booked the Carnival Sandbar Tour on-line for our 2/20 cruise. On the website, it's hard to tell if the ladder on the catamaran has railings. Does anyone know? The activity level is listed as "easy" which they define as anyone who can walk on their own without wheelchair, etc. My Mom (80 years young) can walk on her own for short periods but is concerned about getting back INTO the catamaran with the ladder. If it's like climbing a step ladder, she can do it. If she has to pull herself up out of the water to get to the first rung, she probably can't. Just would like to be prepared. For their other tour, they say you travel by yacht rather than catamaran. We thought the catamaran would be easier to get in and out of. Thanks again for all the input. The ladder does not reach the sand bottom but there is not much room for you to drop downbto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zydecocruiser Posted February 2, 2005 #8 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Haven't been on that boat, but certainly the first rung - probably the first 2 or 3 rungs will be below the waterline. The crew can also certainly help if she needs it. The picture is kind of hard to tell, but I'd say there are some handrails. I'm not sure which one would be easiest for her - on catamarans, you typically will have to climb up to the deck whereas on the "yacht" (a loose term indeed), typically there will be a swim platform just above the waterline and then steps up to the deck. Also not sure how much to believe the pictures - they can substitute other boats depending on number of people going, mechanical issues, etc. Having said that, I might email these people with specific questions, since I am pretty darn sure the catamaran in Carnival's picture is theirs: http://www.kirkseatours.com/index.shtml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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